Hospitality group Edyn has shared Locke’s pipeline for the year ahead, which includes a further two locations in London, a new property in Cambridge and the European expansion of the brand into Ireland and Germany.

The popular aparthotel portfolio combines the comfort of home with the thoughtful design and experience of a lifestyle hotel, offering guests fully-fitted kitchens and stylish living areas in all of its apartments. Each property’s public spaces feature an array of facilities ranging from flexible co-working spaces, destination dining and artisan grocers to yoga studios, rooftop cocktail bars and locally-inspired cultural programme, while a team of in-the-know ‘House Hosts’ can advise guests on what to see and do in the surrounding area.

Taking a tailored approach to every location, Locke works with renowned and up-and-coming designers and architects, chosen to fit a site-specific brief. Carefully selected and industry-leading F&B partners also allow each new property to engage with local audiences and visitors alike. As such, and despite the challenges of 2020, interest in the brand continued to grow, allowing it to open four properties over the course of the year. Across the edyn portfolio meanwhile – which also includes serviced apartment brand Saco, The Moorgate and The Wittenberg – occupancy for 2020 averaged at 65%, rather healthy compared to the rest of the market.

“After demonstrating the resilience and adaptability of our business model throughout the pandemic, we’re excited to share further details of our Locke openings in 2021, which promises to be an exceptional year of growth for the brand across Europe,” says Edyn’s CEO, Stephen McCall. “As international business and leisure travel reawakens, we are seeing new trends, tastes and priorities emerging. Locke’s hybrid home-meets-hotel concept has never felt more relevant, and we’re looking forward to expanding the brand into new markets to meet traveller demand for more spacious, self-contained accommodation.”

Speaking exclusively to Sleeper last summer, Edyn’s Chief Development Officer and Creative Director, Eric Jafari, explained that now is a good time for Locke to expand: “In the wake of the pandemic, we believe people will start to travel less frequently but over extended periods of time – as they realise they can work from anywhere in the world, why not enrich one’s life in the process? The key is making sure it’s affordable, as what someone is willing to pay for one month is less per night than what they’ll pay for two days.

When you’re staying somewhere for an extended period, the need for community-based events skyrockets. What many fail to understand about this movement of working from anywhere is that after a week or two, unless you’re with a large group of friends, you’re going to experience loneliness. The whole idea of Locke is that if someone decides to go to Lisbon and work away for a month or two, then they can plug into a community of like-minded individuals and yet still have the autonomy of a home within their apartment.”

 

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